Society

Feng shui master Chan waits to learn his fate

By Guo Jiaxue and Joy Lu (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-02-05 07:42

Police yet to reveal whether criminal charges are coming

Feng shui master Chan waits to learn his fate

HONG KONG: Feng shui master Tony Chan, who was arrested on suspicion of forging a will that declared him the beneficiary of the HK$100 billion estate of tycoon Nina Wang, remained in police custody last night as police consider criminal charges.

Investigators raided Chan's mansion at 28 Gough Hill Road on the Peak at 3:45 pm on Wednesday. About three hours later, officers carrying several plastic bags were seen leaving the property with 50-year-old Chan in an unmarked van.

Chan's wife, Tam Miu-ching, followed in a separate vehicle. She left the police station two hours later.

Unless charges are brought against Chan, he is likely to be released by 6:30 pm today. Under Hong Kong law, Chan cannot be held for more than 48 hours without being charged.

Police would not comment on the case yesterday, however it was earlier revealed that they seized a number of exhibits from Chan's house, including documents and computers.

After Chan was arrested, he accompanied officers to the Cyberport office of RCG Holdings, a company he owned, at about 10 pm. The group stayed there for three hours.

RCG, a listed company which specializes in biometrics and radio frequency identification security technology, released a statement yesterday confirming the police visit.

Police also raided the properties of Raymond Chu Wai Man, RCG chairman and chief executive officer, and Anita Chau Pak Kun, the deputy chairperson and chief operating officer, according to the statement.

Chan once controlled a 24 percent stake in RCG through Veron International Ltd, which is part of Wang's estate. It is unknown whether Chan still controls this stake in the company today.

Chan's arrest came a day after the High Court rejected his claim for Wang's estate. High Court Justice Johnson Lam ruled the estimated HK$100 billion fortune of Wang would go to the Chinachem Charitable Foundation, founded by Nina Wang and her husband.

Lam said the signature on the 2006 will that Chan insisted was genuine was a high-quality simulation of Wang's handwriting, and that the will was a forgery.

In the High Court trial, Chan claimed Nina Wang personally handed him the will. Chan has indicated that he intends to appeal Tuesday's High Court ruling.

Chan befriended Wang when she hired him for his feng shui expertise to help her find her missing husband, who was declared legally dead in 1999. Chan says the pair became lovers.

Nina Wang (L) and Tony Chan Chun-chuen are seen in an undated file photo, provided by Jonathan Midgley of Haldanes, the representative lawyer of Chan. Hong Kong's high court ruled in favour of the charitable foundation representing Chinese tycoon Wang's family on February 2, 2010. The long-awaited ruling rejects the claim of feng-shui master Chan to Wang's fortune, estimated at least $4.2 billion. [Photo/Agencies]

Amid news of the police raids and Chan's arrest, the RCG share price sank 5.35 percent yesterday.

Lawyers said Hong Kong police would re-examine the 2006 will to establish forgery. Legislator and barrister Alan Leong said that to indict Chan, prosecutors would need to prove that Chan was aware of the forgery.

Leong said any inquiry of a forged will would involve an examination of inks, papers and microscopic fibers.

After the High Court judgment, Chan issued a statement indicating he would appeal. Before his arrest on Wednesday, he was seen leaving his luxury home only twice, when he dined with his wife at two of Hong Kong's exclusive restaurants.

Outside his house this week, Chan kept his distance from reporters with the help of three bodyguards and shouted "yes" when one reporter asked "Have you slept well?" and "no" when asked a second reporter asked "Are you divorcing?"

Wang, known for wearing pigtails and miniskirts, was nicknamed "Little Sweetie" in Hong Kong. She won a separate legal battle with her father-in-law for control of her late husband's estate just two years before her death in 2007.

Tony Chan's lawyer, Jonathan Midgley, could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Wang's 2002 will, which was found to be valid by the High Court, calls for the Chinachem Charitable Foundation to set up a China prize akin to the Nobel Prize and sets aside funds for her late husband's family along with assistance to the staff of Chinachem and their families.